Data released this week showed that home prices are continuing to improve, with all cities in the S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city composite recording price gains for the third month in a row.

The Commerce Department also reported that prices of new homes sold in August soared compared with the month before, rising a record 11.2%.

But if you want to get the best idea of whether a housing market is starting to improve, you might be better off taking a look at the price per square foot of properties on the market, as Lew Sichelman writes in his Realty Q&A column today.

Looking at the price per square foot is a great equalizer because it adjusts for the mix of homes in an area, he writes. It doesn’t allow for skewing of the data when more houses are selling at one side of the price spectrum over the other.

To that end, Lew took a look at data from a valuation services firm and found that prices on a per-square-foot basis rose in 78 of the country’s 100 most active housing markets over the last three-month period. Markets including Phoenix; Fort Myers, Fla.; San Jose and Detroit are rebounding well, he adds.

Read all these home-price stories in this week’s Real Estate pages, plus read a Home Economics on how you can easily slow down approval of your FHA mortgage if the property you want doesn’t meet certain requirements. And discover the 10 best U.S. suburbs to live in.

More evidence of housing recovery

Here’s another sign that a housing recovery is afoot: Prices on a per-square-foot basis rose in 78 of the nation’s 100 most active housing markets over the latest three-month period, according to the latest figures from the field. More evidence of housing recovery.

Home woes may scuttle your FHA mortgage

What’s a sure way to slow down approval of your FHA mortgage? Try to close on a property that doesn’t meet its safety, soundness and security requirements. Home woes may scuttle your FHA mortgage

The 10 best U.S. suburbs to live in

People tend to move out to the suburbs for a yard, the quality of the school districts, safety or the ability to buy a bigger house than they can in the city. But some suburbs outshine others. The 10 best U.S. suburbs to live in.

New home sales dip in August, prices soar

The devil in the housing report details

Home prices are rising, experts say, but not as much as some reports may suggest. And to maintain a realistic view of any real-estate recovery, it may be wise to err on the conservative side The devil in the housing report details.

Faster mortgage sale helps borrowers: Treasury

Ramping up sales of $1.2 trillion in mortgages owned by government-controlled housing giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will help taxpayers and benefit borrowers, according to analysts and a Treasury Department official who spearheaded the initiative. Faster mortgage sale helps borrowers: Treasury.

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